If the SEC title game has been a national semifinal game during the league’s seven-year run of BCS champs, welcome to what could amount to the quarterfinals. Iron Bowl style.

The Tide (11-0, 7-0 SEC) remains the national front-runner and is a 10.5-point favorite for this one. The Tigers (10-1, 6-1) have arguably been the season’s biggest surprise, though unlike Alabama they’d likely still need either No. 2 Florida State or No. 3 Ohio State to lose.

Auburn has lost the past two Iron Bowls by a combined 91-14 and failed to produce an offensive touchdown in either game. Much has changed since coach Gus Malzahn’s arrival.

“We’ve been fueled by doubt all season,” Auburn tailback Tre Mason said. “A lot of guys are fired up and we like being the underdog.”

It hasn’t been an ideal position in this game historically. The highest ranked team has gone 42-10 in the Iron Bowl since 1955, but there have been precious few like this one.

The 1971 game pitted No. 3 Alabama versus No. 5 Auburn. The 1989 game was huge for Auburn fans as the first one played at Jordan-Hare Stadium.

Perhaps this one will end up topping them all.

Here are things to watch in the Iron Bowl:

Marshall vs. McCarron: The Tide’s AJ McCarron is a Heisman Trophy candidate with a big-game reputation. Auburn’s Gus Malzahn has fashioned his offense to take advantage of Nick Marshall’s strengths: downfield passing and running. This will be the biggest game of the junior college transfer’s career while McCarron has won two national titles.

What a rush: It’s the SEC’s top running game against the best run defense. Auburn ranks second nationally in rushing at 320.3 yards per game behind two of the league’s top-6 rushers, Marshall and Mason. Alabama’s fourth against the run, with opponents managing just 91.3 rushing yards on average. The Tigers have four runners with at least five touchdowns, matching what the Tide has allowed all season.

Potent offenses: They go about it differently, but both offenses are formidable. The Tigers have scored 30-plus points seven games in a row for the first time since 1994, using a fast-paced style. Alabama is No. 2 in the SEC in points per game (39.7) and has had only 19 three-and-outs in 119 possessions.